Carrot and Stick

Silas Switchbranch, wizard of the secretive Ordo Venator, is a man whose lack of luck is only equal to his ambitions. He will become a wizard-knight one day... if he can survive that long. That means taking risks, and picking up jobs that no one else wants. Including one job, in a small podunk city in upstate New York where his investigation immediately goes sour and has him running wand-first into an abnormal number of daemons... and also a strange redheaded girl who can fling magic around like nobody's business and who thinks she's a magical girl from something she calls 'anime.'  Stuck, with no one to rely on but the far too excitable and imaginative Carrot Cuddleworth, Silas has to figure out the mystery at the centre of what might well be a terrible conspiracy while keeping his sanity in check and his newfound ally alive. Read Carrot and Stick if you like: The Dresden FilesBleachSilly girls with too much powerThe magic of friendshipPetty crime